


Knocking on Heaven's Door

by LadyLanera



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Castiel and Dean Winchester in Love, Castiel/Dean Winchester First Kiss, Dean Winchester Uses Actual Words, Dean Winchester in Heaven, Dean and Cas have kids in heaven, Dean is a persistent SOB, Episode Fix-It: s15e20 Carry On, F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, Gabriel is in it briefly but says nothing, Jack shows up, M/M, Minor Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Post-Episode: s15e20 Carry On, Sam Winchester done screwed up, Sam Winchester in Heaven, Sam and that unknown woman who gave him his son, Season/Series 15 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:08:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27642572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyLanera/pseuds/LadyLanera
Summary: The missing parts of Heaven... or at least my version of it.“All right then.” Dean exhaled loudly.If Cas thought he could ignore Dean’s ass until Sam showed up, well, that angel of his had another thing coming. That was for damn sure.Dean Winchester was a persistent son of a bitch.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 39
Kudos: 306
Collections: SPN Finale "Destiel is CANON" Collection





	Knocking on Heaven's Door

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm not sure if this is going to satisfy anyone, but it at least addresses the major plot holes or glaring overlooks that just were downright infuriating to me. Any mistakes are obviously going to be mine. Hopefully, though, this is a bit better than the actual episode that just needed more. If not, thankfully, you're going to have a lot of flavors of your perfect version to find. All my love and hope this heals the bitter sting in our hearts.

Sitting at the edge of the dock in his ugly ass folding lawn chair, Dean stared out at the water while watching yet another beautiful sunset in Heaven. He had prayed to Cas. Multiple times in fact. However, the angel either wasn’t listening or too busy. Dean kept trying, though. Every single day. And he’d keep trying until that son of a bitch actually picked up the damn phone and showed the hell up.

“Castiel, come on, man. You can’t keep ghosting me for the rest of time. I’m here.” He sighed heavily, shaking his head. “Bobby told me our kid saved your ass from the Empty. So, get your feathery ass over here. I mean it!” Dean huffed when he only heard silence, taking another swig of beer before swallowing. “I get it! All right! I do! Just . . . _please_!”

When there was still nothing, he groaned, letting his head fall back.

“What? You want me on my knees?” Dean shouted. “Come on, Cas!”

Still, he heard nothing but the gentle lapping of the waves against the dock.

“Cas!” he shouted even louder. “I know you can hear me!”

“The whole damn world can hear you, Winchester!” shouted someone from their boat across the way. “Give it a rest, will you? He’s not coming.”

Dean glared back.

“Cas, come on, man. We have shit to talk about,” he stated with a sigh. “Just show up. Please! Please, man!”

Still, his only answer was silence. As it had been for at least a month now.

“Fine. Be that way, asshole.”

Dean guzzled down the rest of his beer before he sighed heavily and leaned forward in his chair, bowing his head with closed eyes.

“Jack? I know you’re hands off and all, but I’m dead. You’re not going to interfere with a damn thing by talking to little ol’ me, all right? Just please,” he prayed. He waited for half a moment, clenching his jaw when even the kid ignored him. “Jack, come on!”

He waited longer this time. Still, nothing but silence greeted him back, though.

“All right then.” Dean exhaled loudly.

If Cas thought he could ignore Dean’s ass until Sam showed up, well, that angel of his had another thing coming. That was for damn sure.

Dean Winchester was a persistent son of a bitch.

He had already known from experience that trying the other angels didn’t work. They’d show up occasionally sure, but they were downright dicks when they did. So, Dean chose another angle this time.

“Fine, Cas. You win.” He shrugged slightly. “We’ll have this conversation just like this. So everyone can hear!”

Not a peep was heard.

“When you told me how you loved me that day, I literally couldn’t comprehend it. How could you, an Angel, love me out of all the things you’ve seen in your life? I should have been a blip on your radar. That’s it! But then here you are, saying shit like that? Making it a chick-flick moment—when you freaking _know_ I hate chick flicks? I’ve been thinking on that, you see. And then it hit me a few days ago.” He scoffed. “Why you ran, I mean. Why you went ‘I love you’ and sacrificed yourself, looking all fucking happy and all.” Dean shook his head frustratedly. “It’s because you didn’t think I loved you back. Because, shit, I never once said that to you. Never once went ‘Cas, man, I love you.’ Not once did I say it. Sure, I said how I loved you like a brother, but I haven’t truly loved you like that for years if we’re honest.”

He hadn’t really. He hadn’t wanted to accept that truth— _his_ truth, though. He wasn’t ready. It wasn’t until Lucifer had killed Castiel at that freaking house where Jack was born that he was prepared to look at it at least. That particular parting had messed with Dean the most since it had been the one where he saw Cas’s beautifully tragically injured wings burned into the ground with such a cruel finality. He broke while burning Cas’s body, but the second his angel returned by that stupid telephone box that night, he felt like he had a second time. They had a second chance.

And what did Dean do with it?

He pissed it away.

Again.

Like usual.

Not this time, though.

This time he was going to do what he should have long ago. There was nothing holding him back anymore. No more apocalypses. No more monsters. No more evil. No more interruptions. No more.

So, yeah, he was going to be the annoying little pissant Cas probably was grumbling about with each new prayer Dean did.

Twelve years fucking meant something to him.

Even if he was shit at saying so, it did.

It meant everything.

Twelve years of ‘I’ll go with you.’

Twelve years of ‘Hello, Dean.’

Twelve freaking years of consistent, unwavering love with no strings attached to it for once.

Twelve years of sacrifices.

Twelve years of laughter.

Twelve years of ‘I don’t understand that reference.’

Twelve years of sass. Oh, the sass and bickering and shade alone sometimes . . .

His angel—who once had told him that Cas wasn’t there to perch on Dean’s shoulder—would then settle in at Dean’s side for the next twelve years.

Through every battle.

Through every apocalypse.

Through every loss.

Through every moment in Dean’s life practically for the next twelve years after dramatically walking in like the badass angel Cas was, there was his angel. Right there. Next to him.

And when his grumpy celestial wasn’t by his side?

Oh, Heaven, Hell, Purgatory, Empty, you name it, knew the fury and might that was the Seraph who raised Dean Winchester from perdition and gripped him tight and never once let him go.

Not freaking once.

Even when Dean deserved it for his shitty behavior sometimes.

“We’ve been through much together, you and I,” Dean recited. “Do you remember saying those words to me? Because I do. I remember you apologizing for how it was ending in that moment. And I remember—hell, I remember punching you over it too. But most of all, I remember you listening to me, Cas. Hearing what I was saying to you, and you turned your back on everything you knew . . . for me, a pathetic loser who chased after his daddy’s love and was too damn blind to see the best damn thing that ever happened to him until he died and got all this free time suddenly.”

“Must you always debase yourself like this? That is not the man I fell in love with.”

Dean leaned back in his chair, glancing to where he heard Cas’s voice.

A small smile reached his lips, his eyes dancing in sheer relief.

“Hey, Cas.”

About damn time his angel showed up. Dean was about to become really desperate.

“Hello, Dean.”

The Seraph sighed heavily, slowly approaching in his trademark outfit.

“So, Jack let you out on a break to deal with me?”

Blue eyes darted to Dean sharply, clearly unamused by his antics.

“He asked me to speak with you, yes.”

“Should have tried him sooner then, shouldn’t I have?”

“Is there something you wished to say to me?” Cas asked brusquely.

Dean forced a quiet laugh.

“Yeah, all right.” He leaned forward, meeting the stunning blues that stared back indifferently. “You don’t have to be so damn bossy all the time, though.”

Cas exhaled exasperatedly, clearly at his wit’s end with his hunter once more.

“Dean, I’m incredibly busy. If you’re not going to—”

“Dude, wow. I mean, wow.” He scoffed, shaking his head. “I did just die on a stupid piece of rebar of all freaking things.” He then waved his hand airily. “Whenever that was.”

“Yes, I’m aware. And you’ve been driving Baby around, listening to that Kansas song you like ever since.” Cas’s head then dipped to the side. “When you’re not sending—”

“Love prayers?”

Dean caught Cas’s surprise instantly and chuckled at the squint. He forgot how adorable the angel could be sometimes. Quickly reaching out then, he grabbed the bottom of Cas’s tie and yanked the angel hard into him, chuckling when Cas stumbled and fell atop of him. From the momentum, they fell back onto the dock with Cas on top of Dean. They had wasted so much time already because of the hunter. They weren’t going to waste eternity too.

His fingers instantly moved to Cas’s face, tilting him just right, before he kissed the clearly shocked Seraph. He quickly pulled Cas closer, needing more almost immediately. He laughed tearfully against the lips that tasted like everything Dean had ever wanted.

“You’re such a dumbass,” Dean murmured against him, drawing in a stilted breath when they parted. “ _My_ dumbass but still a dumbass nonetheless. Dude, I’m sorry. I . . . I fucked up royally with you, making you think that . . . Cas, you’re my big win. You always have been. You always will be. I kept pushing us aside, sacrificing _this_ , for another world-ending event, not figuring out until it was too damn late that there would always be another stupid world-ending event to pull us apart. But you, oh, shit, man. Cas, I’m sorry. I’m sorry you thought I wouldn’t reciprocate, that I’d reject you, that I’d fucking hurt you so badly you thought your only option was to declare your love for me and then promptly sacrifice your dumbass self for me again.” The hunter sighed heavily. “Our first meeting you looked me straight in the eyes, and you just laid it all out there. All my self-doubt. All my self-loathing. All of it. Hell, you asked me point blank, man, if I thought I didn’t deserve to be saved. And I blew it off, but, yeah, I mean. I couldn’t get it in my head why angels would even freaking care about me, a dumbass from Kansas. I get it now, though.”

“You do?”

“You may have been doing a mission, but—Cas, you showed me every damn day we were together how in your eyes you believed I deserved the world. You love me with no strings. You accept me when I’m an asshole. You stood beside me when I was being a dumbass. Cas, how could I not reciprocate, man? Out of everyone other than Sam, you’ve been in my life the longest, good and the bad. You knew what I did in Hell, and you didn’t look at me like I was a monster. You only saw the broken pieces inside and found them beautiful for some reason. Still don’t know why or how, but you always say it’s the damn Profound Bond bullshit, so we’ll go with that.”

“Dean—”

“Nah, man. You cut me off enough this year, don’t you think?” He smiled through tears. “I’m going to get all this out for once. Cards up.” He let out a soft sigh. “You made a stupid deal again. I should be angry about it, but . . . I’m too tired to do that. So, instead, I’m just going to do what I should have done from the start, the second I realized that you—you were mine—I won’t say it every day. That ain’t how I was raised really, and you know how I hate fucking chick flicks, but I do . . . I do love you, man. Not like a brother. Not like I love Sam. I love you with every fucking ounce of my soul, Cas. You changed me too. You made me realize that I’m more than being Dad’s blunt instrument or whatever the hell you said. When you aren’t around, I can’t breathe. It’s like—I don’t know—everything good is just . . . gone. I’m empty inside. I start going on benders, trying to numb the pain. There isn’t ever enough whiskey in the world to numb it, though. And I close myself off, shut down and act like everything’s fine. It’s not fine, though. It’s not fine until you’re right at my side, saying stupid shit to me like how I’m worth a damn and how much you love your stupid human. That you—you would watch over me a thousand lifetimes, keeping me safe, showing me how loved I am, and accepting my broken ass self who couldn’t even admit that, you know, he was in love with an angel because he didn’t want to look in that closet even once.” He caught Cas’s eyes softening and laughed somberly. “I ain’t above begging, but, uh, you think you can, you know, stay with me?”

“I never left, Dean, not really.”

“That ain’t an answer, Cas,” Dean sighed, his fingers curling instinctively to make sure his angel didn’t bolt like he was so sure Cas would. When he felt the hand slip into his instead, he held the blue eyes that shone with so much love and acceptance. “I don’t want to be alone,” he whispered.

“Then I’ll stay with you.”

“Yeah?”

The hope swelled inside Dean’s chest.

“Of course, Dean. I have nowhere else to be.”

He chuckled quietly. “You’re humoring me, aren’t you, sunshine?”

“No.” It was Cas’s turn then to sigh heavily, his fingers lightly brushing across Dean’s cheeks. “Jack and the others have been asking me why I’ve been avoiding you.”

“And? What’d you tell them?”

Dean too was curious about that answer.

“To get bent,” Cas deadpanned, earning more laughter from Dean. “However, the real answer was I wasn’t sure if you wanted to see me again. You have everyone else here you’ve ever cared for. I made sure it would be ready by the time you were here. I even asked Bobby to wait for you, so you wouldn’t stumble in lost. You can speak to your parents, for example. Bobby and Rufus. Jo and Ellen. Ash and Kevin. Any of them, anytime you wish now. You’re all sharing the same heaven. I would have thought you’d want to be with them more. I was planning to come just before Sam’s arrival.”

“Yeah, see, angel, that doesn’t really work for me,” Dean replied, shaking his head. “Because Sammy’s going to live a long life, the life I robbed him of.”

“Dean—”

“No, man. It’s the truth. He’s going to settle down, have some kids, and he’s going to be happy.” Dean then huffed a laugh. “At least that’s what Eileen thinks.”

“Gabriel as well,” Cas admitted quietly, knitting their fingers together.

“Yeah?”

Dean smiled warmly, envisioning the mischievous archangel and Cas talking about it. He was glad to hear Cas wasn’t alone with just Jack out there. And Gabriel . . . when the former Trickster wasn’t being a dick, he was a good big brother.

The Seraph nodded slowly. “Yes. He keeps wanting to check on Sam for her, but Jack continues to give him other tasks instead to ensure he doesn’t.”

Dean snorted, shaking his head. Yeah, he could see that. He then sighed, closing his eyes as he just let go. This felt so right. Like Cas was meant to be in his arms. They were meant to be together.

“Are you saying your idiot big brother’s pining after my baby bro?”

“He has a soft spot for Sam, yes, but you knew that,” Cas sighed heavily, resting his head on Dean’s shoulder. It wasn’t until the hunter pulled him closer and smiled down lovingly at him, that the angel fully relaxed.

“So, did Jack bring them all back? The other angels, I mean?”

“Most of them,” Cas answered. “Balthazar has decided he’s going to spend all his time bugging me and asking stupid questions.”

“Yeah?”

“Indeed.” The Seraph groaned, nuzzling into the crook of Dean’s neck. “He says it’s my punishment for what I did to him for you.”

“Ouch. That’s rough.”

“Yes, but he may have a point. I did kill him after all.”

“You were hopped up on souls at the time. Clearly not in the right state of mind.”

Cas nodded slowly.

They lay like that for a few more moments before Dean laughed quietly.

“Cas?”

“Yes?”

“I can have whatever I want now, right?”

“Of course, Dean.”

“Then, let’s go house shopping.”

“What?”

The hunter chuckled quietly. “Sammy asked me once if I ever thought about settling down. You know I tried with, uh, Lisa and Ben, but they weren’t the family I wanted. I think even then it was you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Nah, I’m not looking for an apology. I’m just, you know—we wasted so much time already. I could have had all this if I had just pulled my head out of my ass and saw the writing on the wall.”

“What writing on the—Oh. About your sexuality. I see.”

Dean’s mouth dropped before he sighed, shaking his head.

“Dude, seriously?”

“What?”

“Unreal.”

“What?” Cas repeated, lifting his head up as he glanced back at Dean. “You know I’m indifferent to sexual orientation.”

“Well, are you indifferent to sex, too, or . . . ?” he asked, barely holding back his laughter when he caught Cas’s shock.

“I . . . now?”

“It has been twelve years of us mentally undressing each other, dude.” Dean’s fingers lightly brushed Cas’s lapel back slightly to reveal the white dress shirt. “I think it’s time.”

“Uh . . . oh.”

Green eyes caught the slight blush, which made Dean snicker.

“What’s the matter, angel? Nervous?”

Cas instantly glared at him in return. “The last time I had sexual intercourse if you recall, it ended with me getting an angel blade to my chest, so forgive me if I’m not rushing towards it.”

Dean rolled his eyes. “Dude, I’m not going to kill you.”

“I will likely achieve an orgasm with you, however.”

Now, Dean was a sputtering, blushing mess. “What the fuck, man?!”

“I’m merely—”

“Yeah, no, don’t say that . . . damn, man. I mean, seriously, twelve years and you never picked up on normal conversation?”

“You and Sam spoke regularly of ‘cleaning one’s pipes,” he said complete with air quotes.

“I hate you so much right now.”

“Then I’ll—”

“Cas!” Dean growled, wrapping his arms tighter around his angel. “All right. That’s it. I’m going to give you the education on humanity you should have gotten long ago.” He ran his fingers through Cas’s hair with a faint smile as he stared at him warmly. “But first you and I have a long overdue date.”

“Dean—”

“Come on, Cas. Don’t you trust me?”

“Not when you’re looking like that, no,” Cas answered honestly.

Dean chuckled, pressing a kiss to the angel’s forehead. “Oh, shut it, dumbass.”

“ _Your_ dumbass,” remarked the angel dryly with a smirk of his own.

“Damn straight you are.” He then motioned for the Seraph to get up off him, taking Cas’s offered hand a moment later. “Come on. I know a place we can go.”

“Oh?” He had found it a few days ago completely by accident.

“Just get in the damn car.” They walked side by side as they had done so many times before. However, this time their hands were knit together, and there was barely any room between them. Personal space? Who needed it?

“And you claim I’m the bossy one,” Cas replied straight faced as the continued towards Baby.

Dean rolled his eyes. Yep. Just like old times.

“Well, you’re at the very least the dramatic one in this relationship, dude.”

“We’re now in a relationship?”

Dean snapped his fingers, pointing at shotgun.

“Get your ass in the car, or I’m leaving you.”

Cas’s dazzling oceanic blue eyes bore holes into Dean’s very soul before a smile slowly crossed the angel’s face. He turned from Baby, quickly lifting the hunter up into his arms.

Dean let out a strangled cry the second his feet left the ground. He felt all the air punch out of his lungs. Of all the things in the world, this was probably ten times better outside of fantasy. Because this was real. Dean was really being manhandled by his angel. He was really being shoved up against Baby’s hood, feeling Cas’s breath ghost over him as Dean was bent over his precious car.

“You really are an infuriating human, aren’t you?”

He didn’t reply, knowing that Cas wasn’t looking for one.

“Of all the creatures, you had to be the one I fell for.”

“Sucks to be you, doesn’t it?” Dean drawled, biting his lip to hold back his groan as he felt Cas press him harder into Baby.

“Hardly,” Cas purred back into his ear. “I knew you were a smartass the second I laid my hands upon you.” His hand then went to above where he had gripped Dean tight all those years ago.

Dean shivered at the connection, feeling the sparks deep in his belly. “And you still chose me?”

“And I would choose you over and over again as well until end of time.”

“Cas . . . “

Dean felt his knees wobble slightly, realizing Cas was the only reason he was still semi-upright.

“We make our own story.”

“Yeah, we do.” He laughed quietly, leaning his head back against Cas as best as he could.

“Then we better make it a worthy ending, hmm?”

“I’m yours, Cas.”

“As I am yours, Dean.”

“Oh, for the love of— Idjits!”

“What?!” Dean yelled back, hearing Cas’s light chuckle.

“Take it elsewhere! You’re scaring the fish!”

A second later, a snap rang out before Cas and Dean found themselves in what seemed to be an old farmhouse. The two instantly rushed up the stairs, knowing this would be theirs forever. Somehow. That this couldn’t be taken from them. This was theirs.

* * *

In what seemed to be a blink of an eye, Sam appeared exactly where Cas had said he’d be. The brothers hugged warmly.

“So . . .” Dean started to say, unsure of what exactly to say here. He knew what his brother had gotten up to with his life, thanks to the angels who visited.

“Yep.”

“Why Dean, dude? Out of all the names, you name your son after me? That’s just plain weird.”

Sam chuckled quietly and shrugged. “Yeah. I don’t know. I thought I was paying tribute to you, I guess. He’s a good kid, though. He deserved better, but we did the best we could.” Hazel eyes darted around the bridge. “I’d have thought Cas would have been here.”

“He’s at the house.”

“Oh? So you and Cas—”

“Shut up,” Dean scoffed, shoving Sam back playfully before sighing. “Sammy?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you have a good life, though?”

Sam paused for a moment before he shrugged.

“I married a woman from Austin after a hunt I did down there after . . . ” The _you died_ was left unsaid but clearly heard.

“Yeah?”

He nodded. “But I was trying to . . .” His voice cracked, so he paused, turning away. He continued a few moments later. “I thought I loved Beth, but . . . I didn’t. I couldn’t. I gave my heart to Eileen—what was left of it after the others at least.”

Dean nodded. Yeah. “Eileen likes her.”

Sam glanced at him with a smile. “Yeah?”

“Oh, yeah. They’ve been talking about you nonstop. There’s a little group that meets occasionally called ‘The Sam Winchester past lover’ group. Becky doesn’t like her just FYI.”

“No?”

“Nah. Gabe’s sort of on the fence.”

“Really?”

“Nah, man. He honestly feels bad for Beth and sort of wants to smite you for being a dick and using her like that. Got to admit. I sort of agree with him in some ways. That ain’t the Sam I know.”

“The Sam you knew was a wreck after watching his older brother die. I couldn’t bounce back.”

“Doesn’t excuse that, man.”

“Yeah.” Sam then motioned towards the gold band on Dean’s hand. “You and Cas married?”

“Nope.” Dean gave a quiet laugh. “Can’t get married without my best man, you know?”

“So, you’ve just been, _what_ , engaged all this time?”

“Yeah. Pretty much.”

“Wow.”

Dean scoffed. “Yeah. You don’t get to talk there, chief. Just be aware, a lot of ladies up here, ain’t your biggest fans right now. You have a hell of a lot of explaining to Eileen for what you pulled judging by her and Gabe’s weekly bitching sessions at the roadhouse with Ellen and Pamela.”

“I know.” Sam sighed, hanging his head. “Is Beth around where I can—”

Dean held up a hand. “Yeah, Beth doesn’t want to see you. She told me in no uncertain terms of that. But she did want me to tell you she was glad you didn’t try to follow her after she left. She got that you were heartbroken and trying to fix your soul by being with her, clinging to that white-picket fence life you so desperately wanted. But she couldn’t be the person you wanted.”

“Not chasing after her was the least I could do after . . .” Sam sighed, hanging his head.

“Yeah, it was. She’s with some guy two towns over now. They seem fairly happy when I see them every now and then. So, I’m going to ask again, man. Were you happy?”

“Honestly?”

Dean nodded.

“Not until my son came along. I just . . .” Sam sighed heavily as if he knew how horrible his answer sounded. “I really missed you. And I couldn’t get over that grief.”

“Yeah. Gabe thought that was the reasoning behind it.”

Sam stared at him for a moment before he laughed, shaking his head. “You guys have just been up here gossiping about me this entire time?”

“Something like that, yeah.” Dean shrugged. “Honestly, though, Gabe’s really not supposed to come in here all the time. Jack gets after him constantly over it, not that dude cares of course, but with Cas ripping out his Grace and all to be human with me . . . How else is the guy supposed to see his brother?”

“What about you?”

“What?”

“Are you happy?”

“Dude, everyone’s here. Mom, Dad, Bobby, Pamela, Jo, Jody, Donna, Charlie, Kevin, all of them. And I’m with Cas with no thoughts of world-ending drama. Yeah, man. I’m happy. Happier than I’ve ever been. I’m finally at fucking peace. That is if Uncle Gabe isn’t deciding to snap in and wake the kids up.”

“Kids?” Sam’s eyes narrowed. “You and Cas have kids?”

“Yeah. Two girls. And Jack of course, but our eldest barely makes time to see us.”

“Because your eldest is busy running Heaven,” Jack stated, appearing at their side. “Hello, Sam.”

They embraced one another, Sam crying as he held him.

“You look well,” Jack said simply when he pulled back.

“Thanks,” Sam replied with a broken smile. “How are you?”

“All right.” Jack then turned towards Dean. “Should I take us home?”

Dean nodded.

A moment later, they appeared in front of an old white farmhouse.

Eileen stood at the bottom of the steps with Cas, two kids, and Gabe at her side.

Dean glanced at his brother, watching the emotions flood his face. A second later, Sam sprinted towards the brunette, who stared back at him neutrally. He skidded to a halt in front of her before falling to his knees in front of her.

“I’m so sorry,” cried his brother, pleading for forgiveness. “I’m sorry, Eileen.”

Eileen sighed quietly, Dean heard as he approached. He picked one of his daughters up, noticing the little Nephilim’s curiosity, thankful that for once she wasn’t saying anything. He noticed that his other daughter was staring curiously at the scene, still holding Cas’s hand.

“You should be.” Eileen then let out a quiet sigh before she ran fingers through Sam’s hair. “You have the rest of eternity to make it up, though.”

Dean caught Sam’s head jerking up.

“I told you that night, Sam. If something happened to me, I wanted you to have peace, to move on. Not like that, however. Definitely not like that.”

Dean frowned when he heard another voice make a noise of agreement. It was so not the time. He was thankful when he saw Cas handle it discreetly.

“I missed you,” Sam cried, bowing his head. “I didn’t . . . I couldn’t . . . I’m sorry.”

“I know.” Eileen sighed. “You’re here now, though.” She then lightly hit him against the backside of his head. “And you . . . _Sam_ . . .”

“I know. I’ll make it up to you. I promise. I’ll make it up to you. Please . . .”

Dean caught her resolve breaking before she sighed.

“We’ll talk about it later,” she quietly stated. “Hello, Jack.”

“Hello.”

“Well, everyone’s here now,” Dean said when no one else spoke a word after several minutes.

“Daddy?” stage whispered the little girl in Dean’s arms, giving him the sweetest look she had.

“Yeah, sweetheart?”

“I think Uncle Sammy needs a hug.”

Dean set his daughter down with a laugh. “Have at it, kid.”

Seconds later, the little girl wrapped her arms around Sam’s neck before her sister did the same.

He watched the tears stream down his brother’s face as Sam held his nieces for the first time. Dean snorted when his eldest daughter rubbed her nose into Sam’s neck. Kids.

“All right. Let’s go have some breakfast and catch up,” Dean suggested, catching the looks instantly. “Later. Breakfast first.”

They could talk later. They had all the time in the world to deal with all the revelations. For now, they were going to be a family, a loving one who finally had their peace at last.

After being stuck in the hamster wheel all their lives, they were finally truly free.

They made their own story, their own endings. And they chose their family.

And wasn’t that what it was all about in the end anyway?

Family

And

Love

And

Finding it

And never letting it go.

They had always kept fighting for it.

Now . . . they could rest and enjoy it.


End file.
